Writer Rock Diggie aka RDF reflects in this blog about his place in human history, the interaction of humankind and humanity as art, as well as the act of creating art. The title is used in homage to the 1995 documentary film by/about French director Jean-Luc Godard, "JLG/JLG -autoportrait de décembre".
Thanks for taking the time to read about who we are.
We are the unionized workers of Verizon. We install and maintain both the traditional copper services and the fiber optic network based Fios; and it's associated services, such as high speed Internet & television programming.
This strike is not due to "greedy union workers", as some would lead you to believe, his strike is the result of a multi-billion dollar corporation thumbing it's nose at the workers, who have been productive and instrumental in allowing Verizon to reap and maintain BILLIONS of dollars in profit. We do not work for a cash-strapped municipality or in an industry in need of a government bailout. We work for a company who, even in this economy, has made BILLIONS of dollars in profit.
As a unionized workforce, we have been able to negotiate and fight for decent pay and benefits in exchange for our hard work. It is important that you know we were not given these things, we earned them. We have worked in adverse, and often, dangerous conditions and we have been on strike numerous times.
As our contract with Verizon expired, the unions involved attempted to negotiate, in good faith, as partners in a bargaining and negotiation of a new & fair contract. Verizon, however, felt that the time was ripe and the economy was bad enough to force our hands and REFUSE TO EVEN COME TO THE TABLE AND BARGAIN AS THE CONTRACT EXPIRED. We didn't walk out the door, we were pushed.
Verizon has forced us to fight, so that we can raise our families and pay our bills and taxes with the help of a decent paying job. We hope that you can show us some support, with a fist pump or a wish of good luck. Perhaps you could delay that Verizon Wireless visit until our strike is over, but if not - we understand. If you need a Verizon service call, perhaps you could tell them that you want a unionized worker from your community to perform it. If you don't wish to show your support, we are sorry for any convenience our struggle causes you. If you could show your support for us, it would be greatly appreciated.
Before I cruise my spaceship back into the blogosphere, I would like to apologize to all my friends, I've been gone for a while, but I'm back. I must have misheard the song, because I've been gone since November. Well, since I've been gone, I've been observing the world around me, now I have some things to write about for a good minute. Here we go!
Just last weekend, I had a rather enthralling conversation with a few people. The parlance begin with a debate on the government's responsibility versus the public responsibility. Whenever it comes to that debate, I find myself a little conflicted. On one hand, I believe that the government has an obligation to oversee the protection and well-being of it's citizens. But, then I start to think, the public is accountable for themselves. One of the participants in the debate stated that the "Liberal Agenda", that a small percent of the population controls everything, is a false belief. Now, anybody that knows me, or has read my blog, knows that I am a conspiracy theorist, and I deeply prescribe to the "Liberal Agenda". He claimed that everybody is essentially a good person, and that if information is beneficial to everyone, then nobody would hide it. Well, coming from where I'm from, I believe that people, on a basic level, are solitary animals. Humans may live in groups, but if a situation arises, Humans tend to regress to a state that is other than altruistic, downright selfish. My friend said that if a person has children of their own, then they can truly be empathic towards others with children. But, as I've been taught by most parents, they generally put their children and themselves before anybody else. So, I argued that if keeping information or money away from others secures your children and yourself, you probably won't think twice about who's suffering, which is apathy, not empathy.
The debate, at that point, basically came down to Human Nature as a science. More specifically, the view on morality. My friend, Heezy, argued on the side of moral relativism, the thought that the concepts of right and wrong are relative to a person's environment and social grouping. While another of my associates stood on the side of moral objectivism, that the concepts of right and wrong are beyond Human opinion. At that point, I rolled my eyes and said "oh no"! From all of my debates, I know what comes directly after somebody says something is beyond Human opinion, understanding, knowledge, etc., that it's divine command, or basically, God. Fortunately, Heezy's father took my usual stand on God (the whole myth thing). Basically, divine command of Human morality means that, according to the general religious consensus, God is good. Also, according to the "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth" (BIBLE, for all the 5%ers and GZA fans), man was made in God's image. So as a direct correlation, Humans are, on the lowest level, good, because they were created from God, whom also is good. I, being the asshole that I am, like to use the inverse to substantiate an assholish point. Check this out, Humans rob, steal, kill, rape, pillage, torture, and over a hundred of other evil things. If tempted, the most well behaving member of our society most likely will take that unguarded piece of candy off the shelf. So using the inverse of the chain rule that "they" use to prove that people are good, I prove that God is evil. "If Humans commit evil acts, and they were created in God's image, then God does evil acts, making God evil!"
Had to throw Michael on here!!
I always grit my teeth whenever a conversation takes that turn into a religious debate. To me religion is one of the most destructive beliefs in society. Look at most wars, an underlying reason behind these conflicts are religious ideologies (and the money to fund the spread of these ideologies). Hitler, Nazis, the KKK, Neo-Nazis, etc., all claim to be Christians, doing God's work. Certain extremist within the Islamic sects known as Sunnis, Shias, Sufis, etc., all claim a directive from Allah, that they are the chosen submitters of Allah, and Jihad is their obligation. Jewish extremist in Israel bomb Palestinians to "protect" their Promised Land (which is one of the largest economic areas within the Middle East, I sense another reason). Just listen to any Presidential speech right before America goes into a war, the President always says that the soldiers are doing "God's work". The Crusades, The Muslim Conquests, The Reconquista, The Troubles in Northern Ireland, etc., are all wars created to spread or defend a religious ideology. Muslims call it Jihad, Jews call it Milhemet Mitzvah, Christians call it the Just War Theory. Most religions have a name for a war fought in the name of their God (except maybe Buddhism).
Over the years, I've changed my position on religion (a little). I no longer find religion to be an evil institution, I find the people within the religion to be evil. I'm not saying that everybody within a religious group is evil, just a good amount of them (most of them are the leaders). How many religious leaders have been caught dipping into the church funds, violating the churches tenets, or just doing something that is downright amoral? Religion created Jim Jones (the Kool-Aid one, not the "Ballin'" one), Yahweh ben Yahweh, David Koresh, Dwight York (or whatever he calls himself nowadays), L. Ron Hubbard, etc. So in the end, it's not ideology that created these people, it was the power they attained by claiming to be the voice of ideology. It's more akin to the famous quote "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely". What power is more absolute than divine power? Many people wants something to believe in, and they'll throw away knowledge and common sense to believe in something. The power that comes from sucking these people in using their beliefs is the closest thing to absolute power, and many people want power, it's Human nature. And now the conversation comes full circle! On the most basic of levels, Humans are selfish creatures. No matter how hard we, as Humans, try, in the end, we are the least altruistic animal on the planet. That is probably why revengeful behaviour is only seen in Humans.
I guess, I'm just saying that, for us as Humans to get over these humps that we have at this point, we need to forget about Human nature. Human nature makes us want to be individuals, but in this day and time, we need a more symbiotic approach to society. Hopefully, with a new President, we all can come together to build a better world!
Remember the world is Diggie. Even the "Doodlebug" told you this was a Diggie-ble Planet. I'm cool like that!
This morning, after walking the dog, I watched one of my favorite movies from the 90's, "Higher Learning". If you don't remember or never saw this wonderful movie, it's basically about racial and sexual tension at college during the 90's. I'm not going to go in on an attack on Tyra Banks' horrible performance, I'm going to just say, that when I walked out of the theatre after viewing this, I wanted to hurt a Caucasian, not because I'm racist, but because the movie just enraged me to that exact point. Lets say, during that time period, it was seen as being "Pro-Black" to if not hate, at least, resent White people. Almost every African-American driven film produced during the late 80's and early 90's had a strong "Black people being held down by the Man" view to it. From "School Daze", "Do The Right Thing", "Cry Freedom", "Driving Miss Daisy", and "Mississippi Burning", films during this period made Black people want to hurt White people. I don't really want to get into those types of racism related films, I want to bring up a different type of racism related films, "forbidden love stories". Movies like "Jungle Fever", "Mississippi Masala", "Zebrahead" and "A Bronx Tale", explored the workings and social stigma of interracial relationships. I'd being lying if I didn't say that when I was a younger man, I entertained that oft heard opinion that people of different ethnic backgrounds shouldn't date. But as I've grown older, I've learned how ignorant and idiotic that particular notion is. And that brings me to the point of this blog post.
The other day, I received my copy of "This Christmas", a story of an African American family coming together for Christmas. A main plot device in the film is the acceptance of one of the children's Caucasian wife. It threw me for a loop, this being 2008, the President-Elect being of mixed ethnicity, and interracial couples everywhere. Maybe it's because I live in New York City, where there are so many people, there's a great chance of you being in an interracial relationship. Seriously, I know that racism is far from dead, but hasn't most of America gotten past interracial couples (I mean, we still have the NFL)? It seems idiotic for films to explore this subject, seeing as it is out of most peoples' head. Even in the new millennium, movies still attempted to tackle this non-starter, with "Monster's Ball", crappy films such as "Save the Last Dance", "Something New", "Lakeview Terrace", and "In the Mix". What is Hollywood going to do next, produce a remake of "Aaron Loves Angela", a story of a Black man and a Puerto Rican woman being in a relationship (make it a Dominican, and then they can just record my life)? Is it really possible that a large number of people still have a distaste for interracial dating? That kind of scares me!
I know that when I was younger, if I would've brought a White woman home, my father would have reacted in the way that families reacted in those films in the 90's. But now, I could care less, I'd date a girl of any persuasion. I've been around America and I've seen beautiful women of every race and ethnic background. I understand that there are still, and there will always be, ignorant people, that look down on people because of their race. But honestly, when whats the problem with me dating a White female? And it can be because she is taking a Black man away from a Black female (especially since most Black women don't like me anyway). Is it because, if I had children, my children wouldn't know which race to identify with? It can't be that, especially since our President is multiracial (and my kids will have that kinky mixed kid hair, word to Cree Summer). When I was young and dumb, I didn't fully understand why I thought the way that I did. Maybe it was too many Louis Farrakhan tapes? But as I've grown, I've learned to take people as they are, no matter what race or ethnic background they are. Why has Hollywood not realized that the idea of interracial dating is not taboo at all in this point of time?
Remember the world is Diggie. Even the "Doodlebug" told you this was a Diggie-ble Planet. I'm cool like that!
The readers of my blog know that for the past few years, I have been very worried about the Pussification of the world. I've been trying to impel the masses to revolt against this threat on manhood. The unstable influx of tight jeans, man-scarfs, DayGlo shoes, and other less than masculine objects that men have begun wearing, is blurring the line between flamboyant Gay's and straight men. What ever happened to real manly men like "Ironside", Raymond Burr; what, "Perry Mason" was gay? Okay, whatever happened to manly men like "Stewart McMillan", Rock Hudson; what, Rock Hudson was gay too, come on, it was "McMillan and Wife", not "McMillan and Husband". Okay, whatever, back to what I was really talking about. I was concerned with the Pussifaction of the world, but yesterday, I found a new scourge threatening the world's sensibilities, the Stupidification of the world!
Yesterday, I was on the telephone with my cuzo, Heezy, he was telling me about his school assignment. The assignment was to pick your favorite song and write about how it reflects society, pertaining to business (he's in business school). He told me that the song he decided to use was "Ebonics" by Big L (a song I embedded in a prior blog entry). The conversation led me to start thinking about the subject matter that is taught in schools presently, mostly I thought about "Ebonics" classes, which was pioneered by the Oakland, CA school board. Ebonics, supposedly, "linguistic and paralinguistic features which on a concentric continuum represent the communicative competence of the West African, Caribbean, and United States slave descendant of African origin", or as I refer to it, "stupidity rewarded". I may not be a linguistic expert, an English professor, and I, very frequently, use "African American Vernacular English", but I know that teaching this substandard jargon to children is counterproductive. When Merriam-Webster, the definitive lexicon, interpolates words, such as "conversate" (the correct word is "converse"), "ain't" (the correct word is "isn't"), and "crunk" (there's no correct word, this is just stupidity), it signals the end to education. Come on, they can't be serious, "ginormous", "himbo", "bling-bling", these are words that have been added to Webster's Dictionary. I understand that if the popularity of a word increases in the vernacular of the masses, dictionary publishers must add it to the word stock. But am I the only one that is a little scared that this is just awarding the misuse of well established words (what's next, adding "nahmean" to the dictionary?). Will it one day be acceptable to respond to questions during a business meeting with a loud "bong-bong"? When I was younger, a person from my neighborhood whom used correct grammar was seen as "trying to be White" or a "smarty-art nigga", will that be the norm for everywhere in the near future? Will the world be turned upside-down, and intelligence will be seen as stupidity and stupidity be seen as intelligence, as if we lived in some "Bizarro World" (word to Clark Kent)?
If you ask my sister, she'd probably say that the most degrading things she's ever been called, besides a "nigger", are "articulate", "eloquent", and "intelligible". Like I've said before, when I was younger, an intelligent Black person was referred to as a "sell-out" or an "Uncle Tom" (word to Ralph Nader). It's sort of a veiled insult to call a Black person "articulate", "bright", and "clean" (word to Joe Biden), because it is assuming that Black people, in general, cannot possess those qualities. So, you can call me a "sell-out" or an "Uncle Tom" because I see the teaching of the youth and the addition of ignorant vernacular to the dictionary as a huge disservice to the youth, who are the future!
So, on a parting note, I want to express a great deal of gratitude and appreciation to my family, such as my twin, Sean, my big sister, Si-Lo, my cuzos, Mercury and Starpower (who helped inspire this entry), and the countless others who dedicate their time and energy into the youth of the world. I also want to express the opprobrium I feel for the parents that allow this injustice to take place. When the world allows their children to be cheated out of a proper education and the misappropriation of their mental capacity, we are destroying not only our children, but our future as well (word to Whitney Houston).
Remember the world is Diggie. Even the "Doodlebug" told you this was a Diggie-ble Planet. I'm cool like that!
So, I guess it's time to continue with the "Digzionary" and some of the colloquial terms used by some of my folks. Some of these terms are common, some are stupid, some are genius, and most will make you laugh. First, let me begin by saying that I was born in the early 80's, so I am pretty much a cartoon freak. Second, most of my folks were born in the 80's, so they are cartoon freaks. And finally, don't use these terms around those ignorant of 80's cartoons or comic books, the terms will just go over there heads. Now, for the vocabulary lesson.
Let's start with "Chapter 6 : Straight Out of a Comic Book"
Secret Squirrel - A term used to refer to a friend that always has a secret rendezvous to attend. A secret squirrel never wants to divulge information about his/her whereabouts. Usually, a secret squirrel has an ugly significant other they don't want their friends to see. Why are you always sneaking out of the club, you ol' Secret Squirrel?
Quick Draw McGraw - A term used by females that I know (not Biblically) to refer to men who prematurely ejaculate. She told me she was only there for two minutes, called him Quick Draw McGraw.
Hong Kong Phooey - A usually mild manner person who snaps when pushed too far. He was just chilling and then they tested him, he got his Hong Kong Phooey on.
Scrappy Doo - A term used to refer to an acquaintance, not a friend, who always manages to screw plans up (just as Scrappy ruined Scooby Doo). Thanks for bringing the ugly broads, Scrappy Doo. Also can be used as a friend that always claims to be tough, but never follows up on threats (from Scrappy's "Lemme at 'em! I'll splat 'em!"). Scrappy Doo over here was running his mouth and ain't bust his guns.
Dick Dastardly - A person who always has a scheme or plan that sounds pretty stupid to everybody else. Dick Dastardly over here said he got a connect on some scrilla.
Captain Caveman - A friend that is almost always unshaven and disheveled. I need to go and get a Ceasar, I'm over here playing Captain Caveman.
Top Cat / Riff-Raff - The "leader" or the smoothest person in your group of friends (most likely me). That dude Rock Diggie is the Top Cat around here. Far Rockaway Rah-Rah is Riff-Raff in this junkyard.
Snagglepuss - A very flamboyant homosexual or a heterosexual that displays very feminine ways or homosexual tendencies. Cam'ron used to wear all that pink and scream "no homo", 50 made that Snagglepuss "exit, stage left".
Pepé Le Pew - A man who believes he has many females, but in actuality, has no game to speak of. I got like ten birds' numbers and you got none, big talk, no action, Pepe Le Pew.
I also have a couple more words/terms from "Chapter 4 : Love Blackually"
Eblackuate - [i-blak-yoo-eyt]-verb To leave a location because of oncoming police presence. Yo son, Jake coming, time to eblackuate.
Nigotiation - [nig-oh-shee-eyt]-verb To deal or bargain with another, in the hopes of obtaining something for free. Come on kid, you have to give me some type of money, this ain't a nigotiation.
Riniggerlous - [ri-nig-ger-luhs]-adjective An action that is done by a nigger causing or worthy of ridicule or derision; absurd; preposterous; laughable. Dude put rims on a Kia, that's just riniggerlous.
Nigalia - [nig-geyl-yah]-plural noun The decorations, insignia, or ceremonial clothes of niggas. Remember when baggy jeans and Timbs were the nigalia, before the Dayglo kicks and tight jeans?
Niggative - [nig-ger-tiv] -adjective Used in response to statements by niggers lacking in constructiveness, helpfulness, optimism, cooperativeness because of seemingly clandestine racism. See, I can't get a job because "the man" is holding me back. (in response). You're just niggative!
Last Blacktion Hero - An African American who has a tendency to speak of an upcoming revolution or their attempts to stop the struggle of African Americans. Who does that vulture Al Sharpton think he is, the Last Blacktion Hero?
I promised last time to add a few terms from "Chapter 2 : Friendly Fire", but I got a little sidetracked and couldn't really get my head around that chapter. So instead I will be adding a few words from "Chapter 5 : Whatever Words". This chapter contains miscellaneous terms used by myself and those within my circle.
Pizzlate - [piz-uhl-leyt]-verb To have sexual intercourse with. Damn, I want to pizzlate Lauren London.
Trauma - [trou-muh]-noun Potent marijuana that produces temporary psychological injury or pain. Yo, I got a mean headache, my cuzino had that trauma last night.
Boonk - [boonk]-noun 1.Disagreeable marijuana. 2.Marijuana laced with another substance. Dude tried to charge me $50 for some brown leaves, like I couldn't tell it was boonk.
Banky - [bangk-kee]-adjective The response to female that you would really enjoy having sex with, as in "depositing in a bank". Yo, Toni Braxton is on the cover of Jet looking really banky.
Pootz - [poots]-noun A person that can do nothing right or is look at as worthless. From the term "poo-putt". George W. Bush is the best example of a pootz.
Beezee - [bee-zee]-noun A person who is physically weak and ineffectual, a synonym for "bitch ass nigga". First, Yung Berg gets ganked in Detroit, then he gets smacked by Maino. Damn beezee!
Deezy - [dee-zee]-noun 1.Word used for an action that is very easy, a mixture of the words "dumb" and "easy". I whipped your ass on Madden, that was deezy! 2.A drink containing vodka and tonic or vodka and Sprite. I was twisted last night, drinking that deezy.
Bong bong - [bong bong]-adverb 1.Used to express affirmation or assent or to mark the addition of something emphasizing and amplifying a previous statement. Did I get that new T.I. album? Bong bong! -noun 2.Affirmative reply. Are you going to the mall? (in response) Bong bong! -interjection 3.Used as a strong expression of joy, pleasure, or approval. Popularized by the RZA. (while listening to a good song) Bong bong!
Suflan - [soo-fleyn]-noun Acronym for "SUcker For Love Ass Nigga". Popularized by Ghostface Killah. Everybody knows that Nas is a suflan.
Cupcakin - [kuhp-keyk-in]-verb The act of constantly spending money, time, or paying too much attention to a person with which you have an infatuation with. T.I.'s song "Whatever You Like" is a prime example of cupcakin.
Following are some words from the subsection of this chapter, entitled "Business Affairs". The word "business" is one of the most versatile words within my vernacular, there are many alternative definitions and spellings of this word. Don't be a pootz, or a beezee, like Yung Berg, and use the wrong spelling of the word.
Bidnezz - [bid-nez]-noun The act of sexual intercourse. Like I've stated before, I'd give Lauren London the bidnezz.
Bizziness - [biz-ee-nis]-noun Something with which a person is rightfully concerned. Jigga said "tell them busy bitches to stay out of my bizziness."
Bidness - [bid-nis]-noun The purchase and sale of illegal goods in an attempt to make a profit. Yo, son on the corner with that "good-good" conducting bidness.
Bizness - [biz-nis]-noun 1.To make difficulties for someone; treat harshly. 2.To scold severely. 3.To physically harm a person. Son tested my manhood, so I had to give him the bizness.
Remember the world is Diggie. Even the "Doodlebug" told you this was a Diggie-ble Planet. I'm cool like that!
I guess it's been a while since I went in on a rant about religion, but nothing really made me want to, then it happened! The other day, like every Saturday, a group of Jehovah Witnesses came knocking at my door. Back when I was younger, the knocking of a group of Witnesses was a chance at hilarity. The best time is when my uncle opened the door nude, hilarious! When my father would answer the door, he would invite them inside for a discussion on religion. To what my father ask them questions that they could not easily answer was funny to me. It may be weird to some, but during my prepubescent years, my brother and I would read encyclopedias during downtime between commercial breaks on "The Incredible Hulk". I enjoyed reading about mythology and religion (which are basically the same thing), and that leads me to the following post.
If God is willing to prevent evil, but is not able to, then He is not omnipotent. If He is able, but not willing, then He is malevolent. If He is both able and willing, then whence cometh evil? If He is neither able nor willing, then why call Him God?
"The Epicurean Paradox"
For the uninformed, the above quote is one of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. Epicurus is known as the founder of the school of Epicureanism, a belief in Atomic Materialism. Atomic Materialism is a mixture of social atomism and materialism. Atomism is the belief that society should be viewed in terms of the individuals' importance and that society is artificially constructed. The philosophy of materialism holds that the only thing that can be truly proven to exist is matter, and is considered a form of physicalism. I consider myself an Epicurean, because I believe that the universe revolves around the interaction of matter, just as society revolves around the interactions of individuals. As an Epicurean, I prescribe to the idea of self-fulfillment. Now, I know that somebody out there reading this is going to say that the idea of self-fulfillment is blasphemous. Or that the belief in personal responsibility is totally contradictory to the belief that a supreme being is in total control of the entire universe. (Dare I say that the idea of one being hearing the mumblings of billions of people is as asinine as the idea of one man delivering presents to billions of people worldwide in one night.) I am also a Deist, and Deism is the belief that there is a "God" that created the physical universe but does not interfere with it. Contrary to popular belief, if you don't prescribe to one of the major religions, you are not automatically an atheist, maybe irreligious, but not automatically atheist. In the words of Styles P, "I pray to Allah, but I'm too foul to go to the Mosque!"
Rational [rash-uh-nl] : being in or characterized by full possession of one's reason; sane; lucid.
Illogical [i-loj-i-kuhl] : contrary to or disregardful of the rules of logic; unreasoning.
Supernatural [soo-per-nach-er-uhl] : of, pertaining to, or being above or beyond what is natural; unexplainable by natural law or phenomena; abnormal.
Magic [maj-ik] : any extraordinary or mystical influence, charm, power, etc.
Fantasy [fan-tuh-see] : a supposition based on no solid foundation.
Schizophrenia [skit-suh-free-nee-uh] : a severe mental disorder characterized by some, but not necessarily all, of the following features: intellectual deterioration, disorganized speech and behavior, delusions, and hallucinations.
The words and there definitions were attached to this composition in order to aid you in understanding the underlying theme. Since the words above will be used considerably throughout the text, I put them up to make it easier for you to comprehend my ideas. The basic theme of this post, is the harm that radical and irrational belief can have on society as a whole. Most people would agree that mentally deranged persons, or crazy people, can be a threat to not only themselves, but to others.
Most religious people that I have had discussions with have labeled my opinions as irrational. By me saying that they can't prove that a "mystery God" (as the Five Percenters call it) exist, I was in someway being irrational. To believe in what is determined as real using the five senses, sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell, is somehow irrational. Obviously, these people have never cracked a dictionary, or they would know that being in possession of ones reason is the definition of rational. Reasoning is coming to a conclusion based on facts, which is what is determined as real using the five senses. It's beyond reasoning that there is some invisible hand controlling what is going on in the world (unless you're talking about the shadow government that they call the Illuminati), it's illogical. Back in May of last year, I asked "Do you believe in magic?" to all of the religious folks out there. Usually that question would receive a stern "No!", but that's only because they don't know the definition of magic. When you ask a Christian "How did Jesus perform the miracles?", they will tell you that as the son of God, he was able to do supernatural feats. So basically, Jesus had some mystical power over the world, and that he could do things beyond the known natural constraints of the world. In other words, he did magic tricks! Now, religion is based on faith, or belief that is not based on proof (check your dictionary). You know what other word has that same exact definition? Fantasy! You follow this ideal based on fantasy, and I'm the irrational person? You throw out facts for fantasy, some talk in tongues, some talk to an invisible God. In psychology, they call a person that does these same things a schizophrenic. The following of religion is totally impractical, it's a belief system based on unfounded evidence, which by definition makes it's followers crazy.
You can see the harm that religion does everyday. From the crazy Muslims that kill themselves and others in the name of Allah. The crazy Jews that will willingly kill to take control of some "sacred land". Or the crazy Christians that will kill to keep women from being in control of their own lives, other religions being able to stay in their own homes (Palestine), and basically do anything to push their Christian beliefs on the world. I'm not going to go as far as Mel Gibson, and say "Jews are responsible for every war" (but they sure had a hand in most of them), but I'm going to say that religion had a position in almost every war ever fought. For something that's supposed to bring people together, it sure as hell has a way of tearing people apart. Maybe I'm wrong for believing religion is dangerous, but I personally fear religious people more than I fear the "immoral" irreligious folks. Religious folks will die for what they believe in, and in a lot of cases, kill for what they believe in. Most irreligious people are living for the reason just to live, while religious zealots are living to get into Heaven or Jannah, and they'll do anything to get on that guest list.
Remember the world is Diggie. Even the "Doodlebug" told you this was a Diggie-ble Planet. I'm cool like that!
